One of the best wines in the world is from Finland says the Union of French Oenologists

Ainoa (formerly Finnviini) Vaapukka Raspberry Dessert wine has been awarded a gold medal and the trophy for the best non-grape wine entry at the 23rd annual Vinalies International Wine Competition held 24-28 February 2017 in Paris.

The competition is run by l'Union des Œnologues de France (the Union of French Oenologists) and attracted more than 3500 entries from 45 countries around the world, though the largest number – almost half of the total - were from France. This means that the judges rated Vaapukka more highly than thousands of grape wines, many of them French.

“This is one of the most prestigious wine competitions in the world,” explained Paola Guerrero de Cohen, CEO of Ainoa (formerly Finnviini). “It takes 5 days for the 150 professional tasters to perform blind evaluations on the wines entered, and the criteria for awarding medals is very strict.” This year only 328 wines – less than 10% - were awarded a gold medal, including Vaapukka.

In addition, trophies are awarded to the wines that achieve the highest score in each of the 8 competition categories: Dry Red, Dry White, Rose, Sparkling, Sweet, Fortified, Eaux-de-vie and Other. “Other” includes ciders, distilled beverages and all wines not made from grapes. In both 2015 and 2016 the trophy for Other was awarded to ice ciders from Canada. This year it was awarded to our raspberry wine from Finland. It is the first time a wine made from berries or any product from the Nordic region has ever been given such an honor. Vaapukka was given a score of 89.6, highest in its category, and the 11th highest in the competition overall.

“Since we began making wines, the biggest challenge we have faced is the common perception that it is not possible to make good wine in Finland” says David Cohen, chief winemaker at Finnviini. “This should eliminate any doubt. The berries in Finland can be used to make wines that are as good or better than wines from anywhere else in the world.”

About Vinalies International Wine Competition

Every year, the Union of French Oenologists organizes one of the most prestigious competitions in the wine world. Over 5 days, the jury members, all experts in sensorial analysis, gather together each morning under the presidency of a French wine specialist, to blind taste wines from all four corners of the world.

Boosted by the competition’s high renown, the medal-winning bottles are sold throughout the world and are highly appreciated both by distributors and consumers.